Too Late
by WolfishMoon
Summary: Chiaki goes back, but not quite far enough. ChiakixMakoto oneshot.


**I think my formatting got a bit screwed up. Sorry. Hope you enjoy, hope you review, and no I don't own The Girl Who Leapt Through Time nor am I in any way affiliated with it. I make no money from posting this free to read fanfiction.**

He rolled the walnut shaped metal in his palm before stuffing it into his bag. Chiaki had petitioned and petitioned for this, but as he looked at the quiet, decimated landscape, he felt the slightest twinge of regret. Chiaki knew that beyond the barren hill a city was just beginning to bustle. His world- time, rather- was beginning to wake up just as he was leaving it. Maybe for good. He knew that if he thought too hard, he wouldn't have the courage to make that leap, so he started to run and let out an exultant shout as he flew into the air and a space beyond time.

Makoto felt Miyuki's granddaughter pull the blanket up to her chin and smiled "Thank you, dear," she weakly praised as the girl -Moeko- guided her trembling hand to the water glass. She knew that it was due to her teenaged great niece that she wasn't in a hospital, or worse- a nursing home. She was still in her chilly garden apartment on her rented hospital bed.

"It's no trouble, Auntie," Makoto bit her lip and looked at the photo taped to the wall. Moeko followed her gaze, "Who are the people in the picture?"

"Well, that's me, the dark haired boy next to me is Kousuke,"

"Really?! That's you and Kousuke-san? You look so young!"

"We were in high school then, We're eighty six now."

"I know that, It's just its... odd,"

"You're too used to seeing me as an old geezer with white hair and wrinkles?" Makoto asked teasingly.

"I never said that," Moeko protested, but laughed all the same, "Who's the other boy?"

"An old friend we used to play baseball with," Makoto sighed, sticking to the mandatory abridged version, "He left Japan a few weeks after that was taken. Niether of us have heard from him since,"

"He meant a lot to you, didn't he?" Moeko commented, "Is he the reason you never married?"

"You're too perceptive for your own good," Makoto scowled.

"Sorry," she murmured, suddenly sheepish.

Chiaki landed with a crash, and the old woman in the bed flinched. The teenager by her side, who jumped about a foot in the air, looked somewhat like Makoto, but Chiaki could tell it wasn't her. He sighed, prepaired to jump back again, but then he saw the picture on the wall.

"Hey, do either of you know where I can find Makoto Konno?" The old woman was blinking rapidly, tears in her eyes. And the teenager gaped wordlessly before pointing at the woman in the bed.

"Auntie Makoto, who is he?"

"Chiaki?" Makoto gasped.

"Oh god," Chiaki murmured, "I didn't go back far enough,"

"No. You didn't," Makoto said bluntly.

"Who is he, Auntie? He looks a lot like the boy in the photo,"

Chiaki dropped his bag to the floor and walked to the bed. Slowly.

He carefully grasped her soft, wrinkled hand in his young one, "I'm so sorry Makoto,"

"You'd better be, Chiaki. It's been sixty nine years. SIXTY NINE years I've waited, trying to find a way to get to you!" Makoto was wrestling her way out of the covers now, small body trembling from a mixture of fury and age. The girl put a hand on Makoto's shoulder, her face displaying her anxiety clearly.

"Auntie, you shouldn't get up,"

"Not now, Moeko, this is none of your business so stay out of it," the girl recoiled as if slapped.

Makoto was now standing on trembling legs and she threw her arms around Chiaki's neck.

"Damn it, I've missed you, idiot!"

"I'm so sorry,"

"How long has it been on your end?" Makoto questioned.

"Four years,"

"And even that's too long," Makoto glared, "Fix this," Chiaki blinked.

"What?"

"You heard me. Fix this!"

"B-but how?"

"You're a time traveler, aren't you?!" Chiaki glanced nervously at Moeko, "If you go back, she'll never have heard this conversation," Makoto said wryly, "So GO BACK NOW!"

"Y-yes ma'am," he said, running from the room to get enough momentum for his leap, and as he disappeared he heard Moeko say, "Who the heck was that?"

Makoto was pushing her shopping cart through a grocery store when Chiaki almost literally crashed into her. He actually fell into the cart knocking it over and as he crawled out of it, yellow goo in his hair, Makoto was so surprised that all she could say was, "You broke the goddamn eggs!"

"Nice to see you too, Makoto," Chiaki replied wryly. She found herself grinning.

"Oh Kousuke is gonna be thrilled," she said as she hugged him tightly, and just before she pulled away she questioned, "Does the future really suck that much, that you'd come back here?"

"Yes, yes it does,"


End file.
